Category Archives: The Blog

Early Fall- a crucial time of year for planting

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If yoHerbs greenhouseu have a solar heated of energy efficient minimally heated greenhouse, then this is the time of year that you really need to pay attention to planting now for winter greenhouse growing. Be sure to check out my free ornamental and vegetable planting schedules here.

You absolutely need to get those seeds ordered and started before the days IMG_0854get really short, the nights get long and cold sets in! Seedlings don’t take up much space so you can always make room for your next crop.

When it comes to veggies in cool greenhouses, focus on the leafy greens, cole crops and root crops.

Greenhouse SnapsWhen it comes to cut flower ornamental for the winter bouquet, look for sweet peas (variety “winter elegance”), pansies (most any do great), and snapdragons (stick to the bred for winter “Maryland” series).

Look for many more choices of both ornamental cut flowers and vegetables suitable for easy and big harvests for winter greenhouse growing in the book “Greenhouse Gardener’s Companion.”

New solar heated kit greenhouse available

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This site (the Suncatcher Greenhouse) just came to my attention. While they are doing

nothing new when it comes to basic solar heating as we have been advocating for over 36 years, it appears to me that they are doing everything right. It is good to see kit manufacturers embrace this at long last. Similar to this kit is Charley’s Phoenix greenhouse and the Growing Spaces dome greenhouse.

The only thing I don’t see on the Suncatcher Greenhouse site is a price which tells me that they probably are pretty pricey. Still I’m pleased to see another kit greenhouse push the 100% solar goal!

Greenhouse poetry

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Check out these great Haiku poems about greenhouses that came from Jennifer Ebeling who has the great gardening and podcast site 6ftmama.com.

She says:

“In honor of my interview with Shane Smith of greenhousegarden.com, the kids and I thought it would be fun to close out the show with some original greenhouse poetry – specifically a few greenhouse haikus. You can hear the kids read them at the end of episode 507. Or, feel free to read along below.  We hope you enjoy our batch of 10 Greenhouse Haikus. – See them here.”
Listen to the interviews with Shane Smith here.

Using water drums for solar heating?

Aside

If you are using metal water drums (like 55 or 30 gal. drums) for solar greenhouse heating, you should think about the addition of drum covers. Drums have a lip on top which can hold water and thus, the standing water in metal drums can promote premature rusting. A plastic lid prevents this rusting and lengthens the life of your water storage. To read more about energy conservation in the greenhouse click here.

Pineapple Guava Rocks in the Greenhouse!

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Pineapple Guava flowers with edible flower petals and great tasting fruit.

Excerpt from the book Greenhouse Gardener’s Companion. . . . The feijoa, also known as pineapple guava, is a small tree or shrub that produces beautiful red and white flowers and a tasty round fruit. Even though it is called a guava it is not a true guava but who really cares? Especially since it is easier to grow than a guava. The plant grows to 15 feet (4.6 m) or more and has thick grayish leaves, which it keeps year-round. It is a perfect plant for most any greenhouse because it tolerates both cool winters and hot summers. Some varieties are not self-fruitful, meaning you need to grow more than one variety. You should avoid these varieties. Fortunately, there are varieties that readily set fruit solo, saving you precious space. Some self-fruitful varieties of feijoa include apollo, collidge and nazemetz. Continue reading →